Nipple for nursing bottles



M. WITTMANN NIPPLE FOR NURSING BOTTLES Filed Dec. 8, 1934 INVENTOR. M4405 MTT/ffl/WV BY M ATTORNEYS Patented May 5, 1936 UNE'E'EQ STA'FEEi PATENT OFFICE 5 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in nipples especially adapted for use on toy nursing bottles and has for one of its objects the provision of an improved nipple of simple and prac- 3 tical construction by means of which a doll may be made to simulate the human function of drinking from a bottle.

Another object resides in forming a nipple with a liquid-receiving chamber having an inlet there for, and in which a wall of said chamber is compressible to expel air therefrom so that said chamber will thereafter expand and, upon application of the nipple to a bottle, will draw liquid from said bottle into the same by the suction created during said expansion.

Another object is to provide the nipple with a removable end member which forms a closure or cap for the liquid-receiving chamber in said nipple, and the removal of which permits emptying of said chamber.

The above and other objects will appear more clearly from the following detailed description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawing which illustrates a preferred embodiment of the inventive idea.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through the nipple constructed in accordance with the invention and showing it attached to a bottle in an upright position.

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1, showing the parts separated.

Figure 3 is a view also similar to Figure 1 but with the parts inverted, as when simulating a drinking operation, and

Figure 4 is a section on the line 44 of Figure 1.

The nipple of the present invention is especially adapted for use with toy nursing bottles and is insertible into a dolls mouth, or positioned in close proximity thereto, and is constructed so as to permit liquid in the bottle to flow into said nipple, thus giving the impression of the doll drinking from the bottle.

Said nipple is preferably made of rubber and comprises two separable sections 5 and 6, the former of which constitutes the body or main portion of the nipple and the latter a removable end closure therefor. Said section 6 has its outer end reduced to simulate an ordinary nipple but, unlike the latter, is not provided with the usual small opening through which the liquid flows when an infant is nursing, thereby confining the flowing liquid within the nipple until the section 6 is removed. To removably join the sections 5 and 6 the former has the wall of the opening I in the outer end thereof provided with an annular groove 8 which is adapted to receive the bead 9 at the inner end of the section 6 and a shoulder ID on the latter rests against said outer end of the section 5, thus providing a liquid tight connection between said sections and, at the same time, permitting easy detachment of the section 6 when it is desired to-empty the contents of the nipple.

The interior of the section 5 constitutes a liquid-receiving chamber I I formed by a cylindrical wall I2 and the bottom or inner end portion I3. The wall I2 is collapsible, as shown in Figure 3, by exerting an inward pressure upon the bottom i3. Said wall is surrounded by a flange I4 adapted to fit over the open end of a bottle I5 with the wall extending into' the neck of said bottle in spaced relation thereto. At the center of the bottom the same is provided with an inwardly projecting boss I6 having an air and liquid passage Il the intermediate portion of which is enlarged, as at I8, to form a cavity for receiving a ball valve I9 which controls the flow of fluids through said passage. An air vent 26 is provided in the section 5 and communicates with the interior of the bottle I5 through the space between the wall I2 and bottle neck when the nipple is in position.

In practice, with the nipple removed from the bottle, a quantity of liquid is poured into the latter. Then, before applying the nipple to the bottle neck, the bottom I3 is pressed inwardly to collapse the wall I2 and thereby force the air out of the chamber I I through the passage I1 and around the valve I9. The nipple is then applied to the bottle by stretching the flange I4 over the bottle neck. While so doing, the nipple and bottle should be in upright position so that the valve I9 will, as shown in Figure 1, close the outer end of the passage I1 and thus prevent, as much as possible, the too rapid ingress of air into the chamber II and consequent expansion thereof during the application of the nipple. When the bottle is turned to the position of Figure 3, which is the position in which it is held while simulating the nursing operation, the valve I9 moves to the other end of the cavity I8 and, due to a notch 2| therein, the liquid in the bottle will now be permitted to flow slowly into the chamber II under the influence of the suction created by the expansion of the wall I2, air entering the bottle at the same time, through the vent 20. When the chamber has fully expanded, liquid from the bottle will no longer enter the same and upon righting said bottle the valve I9 will again close the passage I1 to prevent the liquid now in the nipple from returning into the bottle. To empty the chamber II, the section or end closure 6 may be removed and the liquid then poured through the opening I, after which the section 6 is replaced for another operation.

What is claimed is:

1. In a nipple for toy nursing bottles, a hollow collapsible body which forms a liquid receiving chamber having a wall with but a single opening which constitutes an exit for air being expelled from said chamber when said body is collapsed, and which further forms an inlet to permit liquid to flow into said chamber and be retained therein as said body expands.

2. In a nipple for toy nursing bottles, a hollow body a portion of which defines a liquid receiving chamber having a collapsible wall constituting a closure for the inner end of said nipple, said wall being provided with an opening through which air is expelled from said chamber when said wall is collapsed and through which liquid may flow thereinto from a bottle when said chamber expands, said body being otherwise imperforate.

3. In a nipple for toy nursing bottles, a hollow body a portion of which defines a liquid receiving chamber having a collapsible wall constituting a closure for the inner end of said nipple, said wall being provided with an opening through which air is expelled from said chamber when said wall is collapsed and through which liquid may flow thereinto from a bottle when said chamber expands, said body being otherwise imperforate, a boss formed on said wall and through which said opening extends, a cavity formed in said boss and communicating with said opening, and a valve in said cavity for controlling the fiow of liquid into said chamber after said Wall has been collapsed.

4. In a nipple for toy nursing bottles, a hollow body a portion of which defines a liquid receiving chamber having a collapsible wall constituting a closure for the inner end of said nipple, said wall being provided with an opening through which air is expelled from said chamber when said wall is collapsed and through which liquid may flow thereinto from a bottle when said chamber expands, said body being otherwise imperforate, and a removable imperforate end member for said body forming a closure for said chamber opposite said wall.

5. In a nipple for toy nursing bottles, a hollow body a portion of which defines a liquid receiving chamber having a collapsible wall constituting a closure for the inner end of said nipple, said wall being provided with an opening through which air is expelled from said chamber when said wall is collapsed and through which liquid may flow thereinto from a bottle when said chamber expands, said body being otherwise imperforate, and having a flange encircling said chamber in spaced relation thereto to form a recess for receiving the neck of said bottle.

MARIE WITTMANN. 

